1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to heat exchangers and, more specifically, to a louvered plastic heat exchanger for a cooling system in a motor vehicle.
2. Description of the Related Art
It is known to provide a heat exchanger such as a radiator for a cooling system in a motor vehicle. The radiator receives a fluid such as a coolant, at a reasonably high temperature, and cools the coolant. Typically, the radiator includes a plurality of tubes forming a radiator core extending between opposite headers or end tanks mechanically attached to the radiator core. The radiator also includes a plurality of cooling fins disposed between the tubes. Typically, the tubes and headers are made of a metal material such as aluminum.
It is also known to manufacture the heat exchanger from a plastic material. An example of such a heat exchanger is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,469,915. In this patent, the heat exchanger has a plurality of parallel tubes in a spaced apart side-by-side relationship with the tubes being located between two plastic sheets. The tubes and sheets are made of a thermoplastic polymer. However, the sheets prevent the tubes from conducting direct heat exchange with the air.
Therefore, it is desirable to provide a plastic heat exchanger with a core made of tubes that conduct direct heat exchange with air. It is also desirable to provide a plastic heat exchanger with a louvered heat transfer surface. It is further desirable to provide a plastic heat exchanger that provides more packaging flexibility.